I'm a recent psych graduate and I'm wondering how people have transitioned from academic research in the social sciences to UX research. To those who have done it, what are the similarities and differences between the two areas of research (in terms of skills required, working environment, work life, etc.)? What were the steps you took to break into UX research? I'm thinking of applying to HCI masters programs like CMU, DePaul, and UMich. Are there other schools I should consider if I'd only like to be conducting UX research?

During the Interactions 13 conference in Toronto, Paul Adams of Facebook advocated a radically different development cycle than the "ideal" user-centered one (qualitative user research first, then modelling and concept development, followed by prototyping, testing, and iteration).

Target user groups are tribes. What type of approach to UX design should be taken into consideration to make the application empowering and engaging?
This application will need to make them feel comfortable, user friendly and task focused on their day to day business. Any Ideas/experiences are much appreciated.

Hi all - I am a UX designer whose recently been given responsibility for getting our design pattern library up to speed. Can anyone recommend a researched based design patter library - similar to the usability.gov publication - but newer and more comprehensive. Looking to spend some money, or get what I can for free. Any leads would be much appreciated!!

We're really excited to show a sneak peak at our real-time, collaborative, team-based decision app we're launching next week. We've been working on this app in stealth mode for a little over a year now. The app was designed for people who conduct UX research or are involved in product/service design.